Arthur C. Clarke: 1917 - 2008 - RIP

Arthur C. Clarke had an astounding impact on my life as a young boy. His magical mix of hard science and science fiction kept me rapt with wonder of the world. Rendezvous with Rama and Childhood's End profoundly impacted my vision of what is possible.

Mr. Clarke was a real renaissance man as his contributions to science, literature and popular culture are hard to overestimate. His early science accomplishments helped usher in the age of satellites, especially in the science of geostationary orbits that work as telecommunication relays. In fact, geostationary orbits are referred to as "Clarke" orbits.